Dessau Summer School of Architecture 2026 - Bauhaus Dessau 100! ... Take the Chance ...
In 2026, Bauhaus Dessau will celebrate its 100th birthday!
The Dessau Summer School of Architecture develops its thematic focus from the relevance of Bauhaus Dessau in the history of architecture. Parts of the course are conducted within Bauhaus Dessau.
At the Dessau Summer School of Architecture, participants from different nations enter into an architectural dialogue on a review of modernity in architecture. To this purpose, the components of the programme place current developments in architecture and design in relation to the history of modernity and to its evidence on site.
Dessau Summer School of Architecture starts with a workshop in cooperation with Bauhaus Dessau Foundation (see the 2012 results here or the 2016 results here) on the mutual relations between Education and Design in the Bauhaus Aula. Following this, the Studio is closely related to this context.
Art Class, Architecture and Society including German Language Class, Excursions to close and also more remote locations of Modern Architecture develop and deepen this focal point.
Program 2026
Studio // Common ground
Inspired by the Bauhaus idea of architecture as a social and cultural practice, Common Ground examines how small-scale architectural transformations can generate shared spaces and public facilities within the existing city.
The studio Common Ground explores how architecture can produce shared spaces by transforming existing buildings through climatic and typological strategies. Focusing on rooftops and facades, the studio treats climate not as a technical problem, but as a spatial and social condition that shapes collective use. Through minimal architectural add-ons, students investigate how environmental mediation—such as shading, enclosure, ventilation, and seasonal adaptability—can generate shared atmospheres.
moreArt Class
The Art Class operates as a laboratory for representation, where drawing, modeling, collage, and diagrammatic techniques are used to test how architectural ideas can be constructed, distorted, and re-framed through media.
Rather than illustrating finished projects, students will use representational tools as a form of inquiry—probing scale, atmosphere, sequence, and abstraction. The class encourages speculative formats and non-standard modes of presentation, understanding representation as an active design instrument and a site of experimentation.
The Art Class is led by Prof. Ariane Wiegner. According to the examination regulations, successful completion of this module requires a written or drawn work. The final examination takes the form of a presentation.
Form of final exam: presentation
Start: June 1st, 2026. End: July 10th, 2026
ECTS: 2
Architecture and Society
The Architecture and Society Class explores the cultural, social, and professional contexts in which architecture operates today. The course is divided into two complementary parts.
The first part consists of German language classes that introduce students not only to basic linguistic skills, but also to everyday cultural practices, social conventions, and rituals that shape life and work in Germany.
The second part takes the form of a public lecture series, featuring young Berlin-based architects who present their work and research. Each Thursday, a different guest discusses their practice through the lens of climate and/or typology, addressing how architectural positions emerge from specific social, cultural, and environmental conditions.
moreExcursions
Our Excursions will follow the traces of Modernism. In 2025, they will lead us to Berlin, and Hamburg.
moreTimetable
You can download the preliminary timetable for 2026 in PDF format here
Curriculum Regulations
You can download the Curriculum Regulations in PDF format.
Please click here.
General Information
Period
Start: June 1st, 2026. End: July 10th, 2026
Day of arrival: June 1st, 2026
Day of departure: July 10th, 2026
Term of application
March 10th, 2026
In order to apply, please download the application form and send the filled form and the necessary attachments to afg.summerschool@hs-anhalt.de
Language
All courses are offered in English Language
Health Insurance
Make sure your health insurance will cover all costs, while you are staying in Dessau.
Address in Dessau
Anhalt University of Applied Sciences
Dessau Summer School of Architecture
Prof. Bilyana Asenova
c/o Your Name
Seminarplatz 2a
06846 Dessau
Germany
Arrival
The closest airports are located in Leipzig and Berlin. From there take the train to Dessau main train station.
All students are to arrive in Dessau on June 1st!
Accomodation
Two Students are sharing one furnished room
Rental duration: Start: June 1st, 2026. End: July 10th, 2026
Meals
Anhalt University has its own cafeteria on campus, offering food at lunch time. (Costs 1.50-4 Euro each meal). There is also a student café open all day. Other possibilities are the Bauhaus Cafeteria and the Bauhaus Club.
The common kitchen makes self supply possible. We suggest to calculate the average amount of 10 Euro per day for meals. (self supply and one meal in the cafeteria.) Near to the apartments you will find shopping opportunities
Studio
The studio of the Summer School program is located at the building of the architecture department, providing internet access and printers.
Every student is asked to bring her/his own laptop.
Excursions
Excursions for several days with overnight stay. The field trips will include architectural guided tours, building site visits and architectural practice visits.
Costs
1.050 EUR including fees, accomodation from June 1st to July 10th, 2026 and the excursions — Exchange Students as well as Individuals are cordially invited to apply!
About the University
With its sites at Bernburg, Dessau, and Köthen, Anhalt University can call upon proud traditions in science, innovation, and cultural cosmopolitanism. These traditions guide us in research and teaching. Anhalt University has established close links with both national and international research institutions and partners in industry. New forms of teaching, small study groups and excellent research offer ideal conditions for a good start to a career either at home or abroad.
About the City
Dessau was first mentioned in 1213. During the period of Enlightenment, the famous Dessau-Woerlitz gardens were created. In 1774, Basedow established the wellknown “Philantropinum” – a reformed public school.
In 1919, Hugo Junkers developed and built the first metal aeroplane in the world. The world-renowned “Bauhaus” moved from Weimar to Dessau in 1925. Six years later, the Nazis forced its closure. Today, Walter Gropius’s Bauhaus Building in Dessau is a longestablished icon of Modernism.
Contact/ Project Team
Prof. Bilyana Asenova (Director of the Program)
Chelsea Schedler MA MSc
Hochschule Anhalt
Dessau Summer School of Architecture
Seminarplatz 2a
06846 Dessau, Germany
Fon +49 (0) 340 5197 1562
Fax +49 (0) 340 5197 1599
E-Mail afg.SummerSchool@hs-anhalt.de
Apply
Thank you for your interest in applying to the Dessau Summer School of Architecture 2026. The closing date for applications is February 28, 2025. Please download the application form below and send the filled form and the necessary attachments to afg.summerschool@hs-anhalt.de